Carving my path
by Canthandlemyswag
Summary: After a discussion with his father, doubt submerges Shen's mind. Will he deny his existence as Shen and devote himself entirely to his duty as the Eye of Twilight or will he try to make his two sides coexist? His decision will make him go through unexpected trials he wasn't prepared to deal with. Will turn to M for Mature because of lemons.
1. Chapter 1

The breeze was pleasant that day, refreshing. A boy, sitting on the grass, under a tree, was enjoying one of his rare moment of rest. With the wind tickling his body, he closed his eyes (even though he was wearing a mask), hoping he could stay there as long as possible, despite his duties. His father, looking vaguely at the horizon while having his back against the trunk, was waiting until his son judged himself ready to talk. The time was silently going by, until the boy finally made himself speak, with a neutral voice.

"Father, why are we here? Shouldn't we be training as usual?"

Moving his gaze to his son, the father answered.

"Your future role won't limit itself at deciding to kill or to spare people, Shen. A human life is not something to be toyed with."

Slowly opening his eyes, Shen looked back at his father.

"Talk about the blunt introduction. I'm perfectly understanding what my duties consist of, Father. Don't worry about it."

He said that with the same monotonous voice.

"I understand what you think Shen. Don't worry about it, I'm not doubting you."

Taking a deep breath, he continued.

"If I brought you here, away from the temple's atmosphere, it's to speak about some points that might go against what you have learned so far."

"With due respect, I don't understand your logic, Father."

"No need to be that formal Shen, we're alone here."

That last comment made Shen a bit astonished. It's the first time his father highlighted his parent side. Noticing that despite his mask, his father laughed softly.

"I don't understand why the Kinkou elders want us to be that formal. I'll tell you Shen, you are the first Eye of Twilight who is this strict."

Not knowing how to react, Shen kept silent.

"As the Eye of Twilight, you are supposed to stay impartial while judging people. So far, you have been taught to totally suppress your emotions in order to enforce the Balance. That was decided by our elders. I, however, disagree."

Getting more and more surprised, Shen finally spoke.

"Father, I already thought about it, I also think that being emotionless is the best way to bring balance."

"I didn't say it couldn't bring balance. Let's take an example. You found an eight-year old kid in the street, starving to death. A young tramp. What will you do?"

"He is meaningless for Balance, I wouldn't waste my time dealing with him"

"Let's say you have to then."

Shen, paused, quickly giving a thought to it.

"Hmm…If I really have to, I would probably kill him in order to abbreviate his suffering and to remove a burden from the society, therefore, killing two birds with one stone".

With a half-smile, the current Eye of Twilight looked at the setting sun. He was reaching his fifty years old, fifty years as the Eye of Twilight, and there he was, sitting with his twelve years old son, watching the sun set. Anyone who looked at them would have said that they were a father and son having a casual conversation. Looks can be deceiving indeed.

"Remove your mask Shen".

"…What?"

Wasn't that a bit excessive?

"I know you have been told that your mask is your face. Your mask is supposed to be there forever, showing people how emotionless you are, but you are not yet the Eye of Twilight and I am, despite my acts, your father before all. At your age, when it wasn't required, I wasn't wearing it."

Still hesitating, Shen slowly pulled-off his deep-blue mask, feeling the breeze suddenly on his face. He then fixed his gaze on his mask, now between its hands and silently waited for his father to continue.

"The Emotionless path of the Eye of Twilight is probably the best one to bring Balance. No emotions means no unfairness, no injustice, no privilege. Balance and Order will be above everything else."

Shen slowly nodded, according to what he learned so far.

"But then tell me Shen. We are the ones who created the notion of Balance. What is its role?"

"That will sound a bit naïve, but I believe Balance is made to improve society's conditions of life, by removing its burdens."

"To summarize, yes. Balance is similar to Law, except that Balance's acts are made in the shadows. Despite that, we act for the greater good. Problem is, Law is used to serve everyone. Therefore…"

He moved his gaze back to Shen, who moved his eyes from his mask to his father.

"Is it really fair to neglect the individual for the good of everyone?"

Shen opened his mouth, ready to answer, then noticed he couldn't retort. With a satisfied look, his father continued.

"Is it fair for that tramp-kid, an innocent, to die for the common good? Even if is a burden, he must be given a chance. After all, like you, he is a human being."

Giving his son some time to think about it, he turned back his gaze to the sun.

Few moments later, he heard a deep sigh, then the awaited answer.

"I still don't understand Father. I have been taught and trained to serve the Balance, regardless to people, since my birth, only to have you telling me that it is wrong?"

"It is normal that you reject what I say Shen, since I myself highly contributed to your training. If you want, forget what I said. To put it simply, what I want you to understand is that you must be a Judge, not his hammer. You must be neutral while showing people that your judgment is indeed neutral and fair. If you act fairly but regardless of people, it is injustice toward these people."

Taking another deep breath, he proceeded.

"We are not heroes Shen, we cannot save everyone. We are, like the people we serve, humans."

They kept silent, hearing the wind's gentle caress against the leaves.

"I…will think about it"

With a smile, his father answered

"Good, that's all I'm asking from you. Let's head back to the temple, it is getting late"

Shen swiftly stood up, shook his clothes to remove the grass stuck to it, and walked side-by-side with his Father, while putting back his mask.

"By the way Shen, Don't you notice a problem in the path I earlier called "The Emotionless path of the Eye of Twilight"? By following this path, there will be the people judged worthy to live in this world, there will be the people considered has a burden who will be killed. Don't you think there is someone missing?"

"Not really, Father, I do not."

His voice stayed the same until the end. Neutral.

"You, Shen. The person who will divide people in these two categories, the Eye of Twilight, you. What will you be in this world?"

Earlier, when he showed lack of words, his voice stayed the same as usual. This time, however, doubt was present.

"Well, to be honest…I never thought about myself"

Shen heard another deep sight from his father. How many times did he do it already? Is it regret about his doings?

"That's what I expected. The elders will probably banish me if they hear what I'm going to say now but…"

"Don't forget that the same goes for you Shen. You are a human being, living a proper life is perfectly rightful, and I am telling you this as the Eye of Twilight. My duties didn't prevent me from enjoying my life."

He then added with a chuckle.

"Your presence here being an evidence."

However, Shen kept silent, thinking about his father's last sentences. Was he really allowed to have a normal life? He already put in his mind that he will live as the Eye of Twilight, not as Shen. These last hours with his father made him think about his existence, both as Shen and as the Eye of Twilight. Will he continue following the path he was prepared to, staying emotionless to the bitter end, or will he (ironically) try to find a balance between his two existences ?

"Shen!"

Lost in his thoughts, He suddenly heard a faraway voice calling for him. He looked at his father, but surprisingly the latter was walking naturally alongside him, obviously not disturbed by the voice.

"Shen!"

He heard the same voice again, and again, it looked far distant. He couldn't even tell from which side it came. Looking around him, he only noticed his father who was again not disturbed, walking normally, still having his smile from the earlier conversation.

"Shen!"

Shen barely had the time to notice that the voice was closer that he felt the world fading around him. Slowly, Darkness surrounded him.

"Shen! Wake up!"

Shen slowly opened his eyes. He felt his hands under his masked head, a pain in his back and a small hand gently shaking him.

"I'm awake, I'm awake, stop it already…"

Raising his head, he looked around, taking awareness of his environment. He was in his room in the Institute of War, the siege of the League of Legends, sitting on his desk, in front of his table, where many pieces of paper, feathers and inkstands were scattered. Next to him and looking at him anxiously, was standing Akali, his comrade, fellow champion, and childhood friend.

_**Author Notes :**_

_Hey everyone, I'll just be writing some important notes here concerning the story and myself._

_This is my first fanfic, so I hope my lack of experience won't be a problem with the good going of the story, concerning this point I will just say that your reviews, as long as you are polite, will always be appreciated. I will also be grateful if you manage to tell me what is right and what is wrong with my writing, since English is not my main language._

_Moving to the story, I'm writing a Shen-OC centered story so I probably won't evolve the other champions too much (even the related ones, Akali Kennen and Zed) because according to what I read in the , Shen really lacks attention. I mean COME ON GUYS, am I the only one bored to see 10 fanfictions where Zed appears per day _(；￣Д￣）_?_

_Ahem, anyway…_

_As I said, I will probably turn to M later and involve lemons, since there can't be love without lemons *manly tears*_

_Here__ are some facts that you may need to know (Not sure about involving all of them, I just prefer writing a permanent list that will stay unchanged to the bitter end):_

_- The Kinkou Order is managed by a council of elders (Proper to the Kinkou, not the Ionian ones). They decide about how recruitment, teaching and training go, while the Triumvirate's role is to ensure balance through Valoran._

_-I think that the Triumvirate was supposed to have Zed as the Heart of the Tempest, but ended taking Kennen after Zed's betrayal. What makes me think that is the fact that Kennen and Zed's Shockblade skin share the Thunder Theme._

_-The Kinkou Order, since it acts in the shadows, is unknown to the majority of people, who simply refers them as "ninjas". Same goes for the Order of the Shadow._

_-I'm pretty sure that Shen, Akali and Zed got the same age : For Shen and Zed, because they trained together, and for Shen and Akali because they belong to the Triumvirate, I'm pretty sure they would have taken another ninja if Akali is too young ( My mind is twisted I know __(,,#__ﾟ__Д__ﾟ__) ) _

_-I won't make Shen act like a robot, he can sure be emotionless (Making himself resist to Ahri's charm for example), but he is still human after all._

_Well, there you go, the first step of a long road. Hope you guys enjoyed reading, if you have something to say, no matter what, feel free to leave a review. Never forget that I'm always looking forward to improve my writing._

_See you soon!_


	2. Chapter 2

**Fast notes:**

_I will always be precise when I talk about Ionian Elders. If Shen/a ninja says "Our Elders", he means the Kinkou Elders._

_Enjoy your reading!_

_o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

"What's with the worried look?"

His mask slightly turned-up at his mouth's level, Shen was eating the toast Akali brought him with some tea.

"Sigh…You shouldn't overwork yourself Shen, especially when there is no need to rush."

"You know what I say, never put off to tomorrow what can be done today."

"That proverb is for lazy people, not people who put their duties in front of their health."

"But are we these kind of people?"

"Always the final say,as usual."

"That's a part of my duties indeed, it would be really hurtful if I had to change my final judgment."

"Are you sure you are awake? Now you got the sense of humor."

Probably his memories' influence,but he didn't care much more.

Turning his attention to his papers, Shen organized the report he spent the night writing and revised it.

At the approach of the Ionian Festival of Fire, a symbol of Ionian culture, the Kinkou Order had to be more present than ever, because of the Festival's scale. Two months are still left, yet they had more work to do than usual, dealing with smuggling and inter-faction conflicts usually, but sometimes they had business with mercenaries, which was a bit more serious than religious quarrels between demacians and noxians. As if that was not enough, the Order of the Shadow was strangely more hostile toward them, despite Zed's respect toward traditions.

Of course it was not the Kinkou's job, but they were highly respectful of traditions, so they could not allow it to be wasted because of lack of order, not to mention the economical and touristic importance of the event. Thus, each year at the approach of the Festival, The Order acted directly with the Elder in charge of it.

"Hope it will be worth it…" Shen whispered for himself after ending his reading.

Akali, who heard him despise his voice, said cheerfully.

"It's always worth it, Enjoying our resting moments along with the festival is probably the best part of my life."

Keeping his eyes on the report, Shen stood up and left his room, Akali following him.

"Yes, I'm pretty sure it will be rewarded. You, along with our ninja fellows, always surpass yourselves."

"You being the first of us."

She said that with a derisive tone, but soon enough had a doubt.

"I mean, you DO take time to rest right?"

"If I have time, yes."

"Don't try to dodge. How much days off did you take so far?"

"Well, let's see… I guess you can say that I took one day off so far, more precisely I rested three hours."

He said that normally, but these words stunned Akali.

"Maybe I'm too curious, but what was that special occasion. Actually I think at nothing, aside maybe of the… "

" ...Tale of Reina,yes, the tale we performed together."

"And you didn't take any vacations since…?"

"My birth."

"Not even at Snowdown? Summer?"

"Nope."

Akali's sigh was so deep that Shen wondered if he had a drowsy aura around him. First his father, now Akali.

"Shen, you are perfectly aware that overworking leads to less efficiency and exhausting yourself."

He paused a bit then added.

"You are not different from other humans Shen."

Shen, who was about to knock the door they reached, stopped his movement.

The same words, again, from another mouth. Still remembering the dream he had with his father, he kept silent. Despite that conversation, his path was already decided by fate. Shen kept training to become the Eye of Twilight, and nothing else. Until now, nothing has changed. Since his birth, he trained, fought, acted for the same reasons. Ensure the Balance.

When he spoke, Akali felt a shiver running down her spine.

His voice was icy, empty from life. It wasn't Shen who said that, it was the Eye of Twilight. He slowly turned his head to meet her gaze. Even though he was wearing a mask, Akali felt that his eyes were like his voice. Penetrating, yet empty.

"I was made to be different from other humans, Fist of Shadow."

There it is, the unbreakable shell where he locked himself in. It was the Eye of Twilight who spoke this time,not Shen, since he was calling her by her title. She said with a more confident voice.

"As the Fist of Shadow, I think that your devotion to Balance is admirable."

Then she lowered her voice and continued with a sorrowful tone.

"As your friend, I am worried about you."

That made Shen aware of his coldness,making him feeling guilt. Akali was the most precious person for him. They both shared mutual comprehension and were always covering each other's back. Ninjas often called themselves brothers, but despite the symbolic meaning, he could really say that Akali was like a sister to him.

He turned back to directly face her and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Excuse my emotionless Akali, I didn't mean to hurt you. I am grateful for your concern, but I have to put my duties in front of my comfort. I don't think our Elders will grant me any day of rest anyway."

"They will not since you don't ask to."

They kept silent for a few moments, then Akali put her hand on his.

"No one can make you sacrifice your life for your duties Shen, even our Elders know that."

She then removed her hand and left.

Shen didn't move, as his talking with Akali strengthened his memories' effect.

His conversation with his father didn't change anything in his life, yet Shen was still disturbed by his fathers' words. Now that he learned how to keep his heart insensible to words and feelings, can he enjoy some rest like every young man of his age? He was around twenty, yet the only woman he really knows is Akali, who he viewed more as comrade than a woman. He couldn't also say that he had friends, he was of course familiar with the other Ionian champions, being one himself, yet he doesn't try making contact with them.

"_Now is not the time to think about my social life."_

Recomposing himself, Shen gave a brief knock at the door then entered.

Like him, Toshi was a Kinkou ninja, except that, when Ionia joined the league, he asked to interrupt his training to become a summoner. The Order accepted under the condition that he stayed related to them. Toshi accepted, and became the first (and so far only) Kinkou summoner.

Besides his summoner role, he acted as a transit between The Triumvirate (when they were at the Institute of War) and the Order. And of course, as a transit between Ionia and the Kinkou, especially when cooperation is required, like it's the case currently.

"Toshi, here's this week's report."

He said so as soon as he penetrated his fellow's room, before noticing that Toshi was in front of a table, focusing his look on what looked like magic runes, "drawn" on paper. Shen wasn't familiar with the common magic, using mana, so he didn't bother himself trying to understand it.

"Ah, Shen. A message arrived a few minutes ago. Elder Chingis wants to receive the report personally and as soon as possible, our Elders already gave their agreement."

"Odd, it's a just simple report. Alright then."

"I'll teleport you right now."

Shen's last thoughts before feeling the word spinning around him were for Toshi. Despite having the same age, when they were younger Shen used to watch over him, since Toshi was showing some excessive innocence, even some naivety concerning the world's danger. But after bluntly discovering the reality by seeing both his parents getting killed the night of Zed's attack, he dramatically changed.

"_Becoming a bit like me…"_

**(I used the Placidium photo on Ionia's page in the lolwikia to make the following description)**

Few seconds later, Shen felt ground under him. He was in front of the Placidium's temple, probably Ionia's most important place, may it be symbolic or politic. Looking around him, he notices the waterfalls, above the place. Two waterfalls were falling from the mountain above the Placidium, crashing in a huge roar, and then pursuing their road by going under the huge bridge constructed there, the bridge being the Shojin Monastery. How the Ionians managed to build this place while adapting to the environment and keeping it intact was utterly amazing. Even Shen could understand why people, no matter their state, came from the four corners of Valoran just to visit the Placidium.

"_A beautiful landscape indeed…"_

Hearing footsteps coming from the temple, he turned his gaze to its entrance.

"Glad to see that Ionia's beauty reaches even you, Shen!"

Wearing a long white dress having Ionia's crest on it, a medium-sized man was walking toward him, having a kind smile on his face. He had grey hair as well as many wrinkles across his face, yet his posture shows that, despite his advanced age he still had his place in this world.

While bowing him, Shen said.

"Elder Chingis, it's always a pleasure to see you in a good health. But why are you worried about a simple report? Despite the trouble, there is no danger troubling the good going of the preparations of the Festival."

"As an Elder, I will always do what is necessary to keep Ionia prosperous. Therefore, As the Elder in charge of the Festival, I will do my best to make this year's Festival memorable. Staying informed is an essential point."

Taking the report from Shen's stretched hand, he began reading it, speaking in a low voice sometimes, for himself.

"Diplomatic issues of course, nothing new…God, I thought these smuggling activities were ended…As usual I will have to give some orders to the guards…"

Rolling the report, he turned his attention to Shen.

"Well, as you said it looks more than annoyance than danger, good job from the Kinkou as usual."

"That's very kind of you. We only do what is necessary, Elder Chingis."

"Tell me Shen, what are you planning to do?"

"Please, Elder Chingis, that topic has been mentioned too many times recently."

"Come on, Shen, you can tell me."

If they were that familiar, it is because Chingis was an old acquaintance of Shen's father. Even if he was an Elder, Shen remembers seeing him plenty times at the temple. He was always willing to help the Kinkou, believing that their acts were rightful.

After Zed's attack, Chingis did his best to help rebuilding the Kinkou, allowing them to install themselves in the northwestern island.

"_And trying to act like a second father to me, maybe…An appreciable effort, although it's not necessary" _

"To put it simply, I never took a day-off."

Hearing that, Chingis stayed silent for a good ten seconds.

"Not even the Festival days?"

"Except when I took part in the Festival."

The Elder slowly brought his hand to his forehead.

"Shen…"

"I honestly feel that I don't need any day-off, my duties are above everything else."

"Where is the point in being on duty if you are exhausted? And I'm aware that you are the Eye of Twilight, except that being so doesn't change the fact that you need to relax from time to time."

Shen could have answered, and put an end to this meaningless subject. But when he thought about what to say, he noticed that this was the third time he is having the same conversation. Twice he felt bitterness at the end of it already,especially when he spoke with Akali.

"_I hope that this will not lead into unwanted complications…"_

Finally deciding to keep silent, he awaited for the Elder to continue.

"You are aware yourself that overdoing never brings satisfying results?"

"…I do."

"Especially for someone with your responsibilities"

"…I know."

"Then why are you so reluctant to have some rest…?"

"…Because I don't feel the need to."

Deep sigh. As expected. As Shen wondered about a way to end this conversation, Chingis suddenly said with a determined voice.

"Alright. Until the Festival's end."

"What?"

"I'll contact the Kinkou to inform them that you are out of service until the end of the Festival."

"…I don't even know where to begin."

"Take your time to think."

"Well then. First, for someone who didn't take a simple day-off, two months is a bit excessive. Second, I'm not sure you will convince the Kinkou Elders that easily. Third, I'm concerned about the Festival's preparations. Forth, I'm pretty sure my opinion about vacations didn't change. Fifth, and with due respect, why are you so worried about this topic?"

" Don't worry about the Festival, you already did more than enough. As we already talked about it, The Festival's obstacles are more annoying than dangerous. We can easily deal that without you. I'm also pretty sure that your Elders won't disapprove this decision because of your null rate of inactivity. Furthermore, you still need guidance since your father is no longer here, and abandoning his son would be disrespectful toward him."

"Sorry to interrupt you at this point, I don't want to look ungrateful but isn't it a bit excessive?"

Chingis slowly turned himself to face the waterfalls.

"My wife and my daughter were the persons I cherished the most. I wished I died while having at least two grand-sons, but fate decided differently. They were killed in the war against Noxus, and here I am, alive and alone."

A deep silent established itself, soon interrupted by Shen.

"…my deepest apologies, I didn't want to bring you back hurtful memories."

Still facing the waterfalls, Chingis answered.

"No need to, we arrived at this point starting from a topic I decided to talk about."

He slowly turned around to face Shen again.

"Finally, I can't force you to rest. Of course, you can refuse and go back to your duties. But I honestly think you should give yourself a chance."

As soon as he finished his words, Shen felt a though immersing from the depth of his mind,probably the consequence of the last keep his mind focused on his duties, he burrowed it in a corner and wished it never come back. Yet it did. And as if that was not enough, he could almost see his father's face while remembering it. That last fact made him smile for himself.

"_Even dead you won't leave me alone Father? Damn you old man."_

Taking a deep breath, Shen looked at the numerous houses, situated under the Shojin Monastery's level, where water formed itself into a river. From his position he could see many points moving at variable speeds. Looked like a market.

"_Isn't today Sunday by the way…? People are used to gather on Sundays…" _

Why was he thinking of that suddenly? He had no idea.

"_Maybe I do indeed want to have a taste of a normal life…"_

His hidden though, kept ignored five minutes ago, was occupying his whole mind now.

"_Can I have a normal life?"_

_o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o_

**Author Notes :**

Sorry for not posting a link for the Placidium photo, each time I paste the link it gets erased :c

This chapter is a bit longer than the first, actually I thought I can go even further, except that I didn't notice how long my writing was and eventually ended having +400 words than expected without even reaching my goal ＜(。_。)＞

Anyway, this chapter concludes the intro, we'll get to real business in the next one, which will probably be published between tomorrow and Thursday.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter, if you have something to say feel free to leave a review,even a meaningless one, i'll be grateful.

Until next time!ヽ༼ຈل͜ຈ༽ﾉ


	3. Chapter 3

**Fast Notes**:

A friend told me that I should inform those who haven't read LoL's lore about Ionia, So i'll explain briefly most important facts :

About the government: Ionia is divided into provinces, each one represented by an Elder. Therefore, there is no single leader. Irelia and Karma are Elders.

About the Festival of Fire: the Ionians gather once a year, In the Serene Gardens, inside the Placidium. This festival is a symbol of Ionian culture, celebrating the cleansing and rebirth of the spirit. I also assumed that it was famous across Valoran and that, thanks to Ionia's wisdom ,it was allowed to foreigners to come.

Italic sentences are Shen's thoughts.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"So you finally decided yourself? "

Shen was tying his bag's knot when Akali came in in.

"I'm not sure about it myself, but I guess I will give a try."

He woke up early, since that, despite the fact that he was a ninja, he didn't like bringing attention on himself. I wasn't even dawn yet. But his old friend knew him too well.

"I wonder how the Elder Chingis convinced you."

"It's not only him, it's you three."

"Three?"

"Him, you, and my father. Actually it's mainly because I dreamt of a conversation I once had with Father that I will do this. Still, two months…? Am I the only one who finds this excessive?"

"Our Elders gave their agreement didn't they?"

A bit after his return to the Institute yesterday, Shen received a message from the Kinkou telling that because of his abnormal activity it was highly advised that he took some rest and that he could take as much days as he wanted until a week after the Festival's end. Thus, two months.

"_I didn't expect that Chingis had that influence on our Elders…Or perhaps is it because my case is indeed astonishing…?_

While looking around him for a last check-up, Shen answered.

"According to the message I received, yes."

"Well then, you have to admit that there is no problem."

"I guess…"

Feeling himself ready, Shen lifted his bag on his back.

"_Not like I'm sure about the utility of what I took with me…"_

After a last glance, he put his handle on the door handle when he suddenly felt something soft landing on his shoulder. A small hand.

Without turning around, keeping his hand on the handle, he waited for Akali to speak.

"This is the first time you will act as your own self and not for Balance, right?"

"That fact didn't leave my mind for a second since I accepted. I can only think about it with uncertainty."

"I highly doubt that this will be a tough experience, you are just going to act like an average Ionian."

"It's not that. What if this journey changes me in an irreversible? What if I will not be able to fulfill my duties as the Eye of Twilight?"

"Even if our roles are slightly different, we act in a similar way. I can kill as the Fist of Shadow while I enjoy gathering with our fellow Ionian champions to celebrate the Festival. Because I know that we act for the greater good."

Like him for her yesterday, she was there to raise his morale.

Shen kept silent while thinking about her words. Slowly turning his head, he then met his gaze. Through his mask, Akali was pretty sure he was smiling.

"Thank you Akali."

Feeling more confident, he pulled down the door's handle.

"_What if we were indeed brother and sister…? Since I don't know my mother and she don't know her father, that's a possibility…"_

But even if that was true, that won't change something in their relation, so it didn't really matter…

...

"What, you're going on vacation?"

"Yes, our Elders judged it necessary."

"With all the preparations left…?"

Looking his fellow ninja putting his head in his hands, Shen said, not changing his tone.

"Toshi, I assure you I'm willing to keep helping, but it looks like everyone is worried about my rest. And preliminary preparations are done, what is left are the local installations, in charge of Ionia. We just need to maintain order in some special cases."

"That's exactly the problem!"

Toshi suddenly raised his head and pointed at Shen, his eyes filled with anger.

"We are the Kinkou Order, we must be vigilant to the bitter end! Who knows, Zed may attack us in the back while we are naively enjoying the festival, thinking that he will be peaceful because he says he claims he respects the traditions. And why are we allying ourselves with this Elder? We are supposed to act on our own!"

Shen closed his eyes. Toshi used to be so cheerful, so genuine, when he was younger. Shen remembered his face crying when he knew his parents were killed by Zed's followers. He couldn't even bury their corpses, since the Kinkou had to quickly retreat or die.

"Toshi, that's enough."

He spoke as the Eye of Twilight this time, with the icy voice. It must have been painful for Toshi, but he will not let him chose the wrong path.

"My Father admitted by himself that it was his fault if Zed because what he is now. I won't make the same mistake. Vengeance is a strong but destructive and uncontrollable motivation. If you let it blind you, you will not only destroy what you cherish the most, but you will always destroy yourself."

Despite being apparently affected by his words and his penetrating gaze, Toshi stayed silent and maintained the eye contact with him. Shen continued.

"As you said, we are the Kinkou Order. We do not act by emotions, we act by Balance. Zed is a strong threat and must pay for his crimes, but if we attack him by pure hatred, then we are not better."

Silence maintained itself for what looked like hours. Shen then saw disappointment in Toshi's eyes.

"I guess you are right. I let my emotions blind my judgment. I apologize."

Turning back to his usual self, Shen said.

"My friend, we all suffered that day. But we must be stronger than our emotions."

With a deep breath, Toshi closed his eyes, calming his mind, then said with a refreshed tone.

"So, what do you intend to do during these two months?"

"Well, to be honest, I don't really know Ionia. I don't know much places, I've only been in the Placidium so far. Of course I went almost everywhere, but that was only during missions, I barely remember the places I've been. So I thought I can reinforce my links with my birthplace."

"Oh, how interesting, a spiritual journey."

"_More than you think…"_

Toshi moved to his table ,took a small leather pouch which was on it and threw it at Shen, who caught it with one hand.

"I don't think I'm that poor you know…"

"Since you are a Champion, all your expenses are paid by the League. It can magically provide unlimited amounts of gold, I hope you won't exaggerate."

As Shen fastened the pouch to his belt, Toshi's hands started to shine with a blue aura.

"Alright then, where do I send you?"

"I guess I'll start from Ionia, the city I mean. But I'll be grateful if you could teleport me a bit outside it."

"Avoiding attention as usual. I can't teleport you wherever you want, but I guess I can do that even if the common portal is directed toward the Placidium, thanks to the proximity. Hower the travel is going to be a bit rough because I will…"

"Spare me your vocabulary. The only domain I know is Ki, and it's not even a real form of magic."

"Well then…"

Raising his hands toward Shen, Toshi added.

"Have a good journey."

Few seconds later, He found himself sitting on grass, on a great plain. Standing up, he noticed a road leading to a great city, build under many mountains, all this enlightened by the light of the rising sun.

After spending some time staring at the landscape, Shen slowly removed his mask, something he didn't do since the discussion he had with his father, years ago.

"_A Mask is supposed to cover a face, yet for me, both are the same."_

Putting it is his bag, he began walking toward Ionia, which was slowly awakening.

…

"_Well then, what to do next?"_

The first thing he had do was to settle himself, so he got himself a room in an inn a bit aside the rest of the town. After moving his stuff and inspecting the place, he had to admit that despite the old look of the inn, it was well-maintained. He was not picky about his sleeping place, but he preferred having a good knowledge about it.

He looked at himself in the mirror hanging on the wall. He didn't remember his hair was that silver before. His eyes, as their light through his mask indicated, were amber colored. He didn't bear any scars and was wearing his yellow jacket suit, which didn't particularly attracted attention.

"_At least I guess…" _

Leaving his room, he decided to wander a bit in the city, without purpose. He will find something interesting sooner or later.

There were no signs concerning the Festival, which was pretty normal, but the city was still very lively. Despite concerning giving death glares to some pickpockets, Shen found his walk very pleasant. Watching people cheerfully talking, trading and laughing while peacefully walking under the radiant sun without anything on his mind was relaxing. That until an unusual scene got his attention.

"…Nothing to do here, move."

Visually upset, a guard was talking with a young woman, who was sitting on a bench and apparently wasn't listening to him. Actually she was staring blankly at the ground in front of her.

"You've been here for one hour already, with that dreadful aura of yours!"

He suddenly grabbed her by her arm and shook her a bit, which made her slowly turn her head to look at the guard.

"I'm speaking with you!"

But that didn't disturb her at all, which made the guard even angrier.

"_At this rate, it might go bad."_

Approaching the guard, Shen put his hand on the guard's shoulder, catching his attention, and said with a calm but firm voice.

"No need to get angered there, friend, be more patient."

That made the guard grumble a bit. Turning his head back to the strange woman, he said.

"If at least she was cooperative…but she doesn't even look like listening! I don't like this but I will have to make law by sword…Damned stubborn girl!"

Shen estimated that, standing up, the top of her head would reach his eyes' level. She wasn't really tall but she had really long black hair. While she was sitting down, it almost reached the ground.

Then looking directly at her, Shen made eye-contact with her. She had red eyes, but somehow they looked lifeless.

"_Sorrow…pain borrowed so deep that she doesn't care about the world or herself anymore...Not even asking for help…" _

"Ah…"

Surprised by Shen's penetrating gaze, she let a soft moan escape and quickly looked away.

Normally that wouldn't have disturbed Shen at all, he decided to act normally, more or less…

"My apologies, I did not intend scaring you. But it seems that your presence here is not appreciated."

Nodding, she slowly stood up, and said with the same tone:

"Sorry for the trouble."

Staring at her back until she was out of sight, Shen began thinking.

"_People who suffer emotional shock generally harden themselves while focusing their hatred toward the source of the trauma, like Toshi. Without control, that can only lead to self-destruction._

_Like Zed."_

Turning around to face the guard who was still there, Shen asked.

"You didn't have to be that aggressive"

"Probably, but you noticed her aura didn't you? I saw her coming out from the hospital over there about one hour ago, and since, she is sitting on this bench staring at the ground, with that horrible look on her face. Having faces like hers around is not good for morale pal, we must stay in our high spirits."

Then he walked away and went back to his duties.

"_Good think he listened to the voice of wisdom instead of using his position as a guard. In a way, his actions are justified. But…what's that?"_

A small box was on the bench, where the girl was sitting few moments ago. It didn't have any particular aspect, just a simple wooden, brown box, small enough to be held on the palm of the hand. Shen took it and slowly opened it.

"_Empty…Hmm?" _

There was indeed nothing inside, but as soon as the lid was fully raised, the box began producing sounds. The music that came out was simple, yet beautiful.

"_Lost in the world but still keeping a simple music box…Probably links with the childhood…But if this box is so important to her, why did she forget it so carelessly?"_

Lowering the lid and stopping the music, Shen kept immobile for few seconds, still thinking. He then looked back at the way the young woman took, still feeling the weight of the music box in his hand.

_"How twisted is your path?"_

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Author notes:

W00t! Sorry for the delay, on the one side I have my studies, on the other side this chapter was rough to write. Hope it will be worth it.

Unfortunately, I don't think the next chapter will come out in the following days, I have stuff to do, but I assure you I will keep thinking about the story (Especially that I'm planning something big for this one).

Until next time!


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